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JERUSALEM — An Israeli official said yesterday that Israel is willing to extend a three-day
cease-fire in the Gaza Strip past its scheduled 8 a.m. Friday expiration, but the offer was not
immediately accepted by Hamas, lending an air of uncertainty to talks in Cairo intended to fashion
a long-term truce.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri said he hopes the 72-hour cease-fire will be extended to
allow more time for talks to end the nearly monthlong conflict. There were signs that Egyptian
officials mediating indirect talks were struggling to overcome sharply conflicting demands.

Even as Israel said it was willing to extend the temporary cease-fire, Hamas officials denied
Arab media reports that an agreement had been reached to prolong the lull until Monday.

Mousa Abu Marzouk, the second-ranking political leader in the Islamic militant group, denied
that an agreement had been reached on a cease-fire extension.

Egypt’s intelligence chief, Mohammad Farid al-Tohamy, met yesterday with the Palestinian team,
composed of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other Palestinian factions and headed by a representative of
the Fatah party of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. A three-member Israeli team
arrived later in Cairo for further talks.

A major sticking point appeared to be Israel’s demand to prevent the rearming of Hamas as a step
toward demilitarizing the Gaza Strip by ridding it of rockets and heavy weapons stocked by
militants.

Hamas officials have called any move against the group’s weapons a “red line” that is not up for
discussion.

The Palestinian delegation is demanding the removal of border closures imposed by Israel and
Egypt that have throttled the economy of the Gaza Strip. The blockade was imposed after Hamas
seized control of Gaza in a brief civil war in 2007.

Hamas has called for the opening of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt for movement of people
and goods, but the Egyptian government, which is hostile to the Islamist group and its parent
organization, the Muslim Brotherhood, has severely limited passage of Palestinians from Gaza.